Release full footage, conduct real review of SWAT team raid on real estate office
An internal investigation by the Gainesville Police Department into its SWAT team's raid of a real estate office failed to take a hard look at the use of such heavy-handed tactics.
The recently released investigation determined that GPD's SWAT team acted properly when it served a search warrant on the real estate office in June, handcuffing and detaining office staff. In an attempt to dispel any doubts, GPD released a slickly produced 10-minute video on the incident featuring body cam footage — but not the full video showing what happened.
GPD maintains the SWAT team was needed to prevent evidence from being destroyed in a case that involves trade secrets allegedly being stolen. The only significant change made by GPD as a result of the investigation is requiring its chief or assistant chief to approve the SWAT team’s use in serving warrants in the future.
The results showed why an outside review of the incident and police department policies is still needed, aided by the release of the full footage. Gainesville’s Police Advisory Council, which has previously expressed concerns over the SWAT team's use in financial crimes, should consider whether GPD should limit the team's use to prevent a potential tragedy from happening.
The raid happened June 2 at the Colliers International office at 107 SW Seventh St. in Gainesville. Members of the SWAT team, armed and wearing tactical gear, detained employees with plastic handcuffs as they cleared electronic equipment from the office.
Colliers real estate agent Jason Hurst, who wasn't even named in the warrant, told The Sun that he feared for his life being held at gunpoint. He suggested that it would have been a national controversy if he — an unarmed Black man — had been accidentally killed during the raid.
Two of the men named in the search warrant — Colliers International agents Dan Drotos and Mike Ryals — formerly sold properties for Bosshardt Realty Services. They have been accused of stealing trade secrets from Bosshardt, while they claim in a lawsuit that Bosshardt owes them commissions. They were also the focus of a recent news report by Fresh Take Florida over their involvement in an Alachua County Public Schools land deal.
More Sun editorials:
Purchase of land for new school shows need for better oversight
UF damaging its reputation by preventing professors from testifying
Matt Howland is the best choice for the Gainesville City Commission
GPD’s investigation found the danger of evidence being destroyed made it a “medium risk” case in which discretion could be used in deciding whether to employ the SWAT team. But the SWAT team's use conflicts with GPD’s shift away from a militarized approach to policing in recent years and other reforms made by the department to develop good relations between law enforcement and the public.
The SWAT team should be reserved for cases in which its tactical gear and weapons are are needed to protect officers, not just to intimidate people. The use of heavily armed officers could have gone badly and led to tragedy.
The unredacted body cam footage needs to be released to the public to provide a full accounting of the incident, not just excerpts cherry-picked by GPD. By showing parts of the footage, GPD has made even more doubtful claims that an ongoing investigation precludes its full release.
The footage would allow the Police Advisory Council to conduct a real review of the case. The citizens' board should then consider whether to recommend additional policy changes at GPD to ensure the SWAT team is used only when truly needed.
Join the conversation
Send a letter to the editor (up to 200 words) to letters@gainesville.com. Letters must include the writer's full name and city of residence. Additional guidelines for submitting letters and longer guest columns can be found at bit.ly/sunopinionguidelines.
Journalism matters. Your support matters.
Get a digital subscription to the Gainesville Sun. Includes must-see content on Gainesville.com and Gatorsports.com, breaking news and updates on all your devices, and access to the Gainesville.com ePaper. Visit www.gainesville.com/subscribenow to sign up.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Editorial: Conduct real review of Gainesville police SWAT team raid
